Friday, January 2, 2009

how i spent my winter vacation

Happy 2009! Winter break went by so incredibly fast, and we start classes this Monday. The past three weeks have been relaxing and busy. Here are the highlights:

On my post-Christmas shopping trip, I got a new cookbook. It's called Cakelove: How to Bake Cakes from Scratch by Warren Brown. Brown is a former lawyer turned baker, and he has opened up some bakeries and cafes in the D.C. area. (I am always fascinated by these stories of people who change careers. It's like they have had more than one life.) As a New Year's resolution one year, Brown resolved to bake more often. He writes that he had always been intimidated by baking, and his underlying mission is to keep it simple and help people overcome their baking fears. His instructions are clear, and he does a great job of breaking down the baking basics. (Plus, the pictures are big and vibrant.) However, Brown does not dumb down the art of baking, which is what I like. He doesn't promise to teach you how to bake a cake using only like 5 ingredients (is this even possible?), and every recipe is completely homemade and starts from scratch. (On a side note, I've noticed what could be the start of a pattern. It seems that I am drawn to stories about people who have walked away from law careers to go into the food industry. Remember my obsession with P.B. Loco?)

I did some baking for New Year's Eve. This time, it was all vegan. I made lemon gingerbread cupcakes and S'mores cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. Here are the S'mores cupcakes:

I've started running again, and I'm considering a 5K, if I can find a race to run. I've been faithfully going to my yoga and pilates classes, too. In some crafty news, I finished crocheting a baby blanket. Here it is:
After making lots of scarves and blankets, I've finally started knitting a sweater. It's pink, and the clover lace pattern only looks complicated. So far, so good. And, I'm getting ready to start another baby blanket.

The break was fun, but I'm ready to get back to school. Winter quarter should be fun this time around. I have a sweet TA assignment, and I'm taking some cool classes. I've decided to take a class in the Women's Studies department, and I'm taking a research methods class. Oh, and I suppose that my break isn't completely over: I'm headed to South Carolina next week for Hawkeye's wedding.

1 comment:

Amanda Ebner said...

Yay for WMST 200a! And also, here is a great site for all things racing:

http://www.raceplace.com/crunla.shtml